Arch support



March 28, 1933.

J. H. GOLDEN ARCH SUPPORT Filed July 6, 1951 r mm w H 2p foot.

Patented Mar. 28, 1933 UNITED sr PATENT OFFICE-'1' JOHN H. GOLDEN, or PORTERVILLE, CALIFORNIA, AssIeNoa or ONE-HALF To r.

v CHESTER M. sEWnnL, or PORTERVILLE, CALIFORNIA ARCH SUPPORT My invention relates to remedial devices for thetreatment of foot/troubles, and has particular reference to Corrective shoes or corrective inner soles "for the restoration of a: 5 fallen arches. v a '7 c The higher side of the major or longitudinal arch of the normal human foot'is adjacent the inner longitudinaliside of the'foot, i. e,, the side of the first metatarsal bone and the =10 apex of the archvis under-the tarsus region of the foot. The arch slopes laterally downward towards the outer side of the foot, i. e.,

the side of the fifth metatarsal bone In my description and claims to follow, the term outer longitudinal side, applied to either the foot or the corrective device will refer to the side of the fifth metatarsal, and inner longitudinal side will refer to the side corresponding to the first metatarsal bone of the The usual type of arch support is designed to correct a weak or fallen arch by presenting a suitable elevation or.arch complementary to the normal arch of the foot,- i. e., the

, arch support is highest along'the inner longitudinal side of the foot andslopes laterally downward towards the outer longitudi nal side in a a ,configurati on complementary to the natural contours of the vsole of the foot. The theory behind such a construction is that when the bones of the arch are held in their normal positions to avoid unnatural stresses, irritated interior portions of the foot are healed and the arch is strengthened. I theory of direct support in order .to em: phasize the principle of indirect support which is fundamental to my invention, and which sharply distinguishes my invention 40 fronrthe usual device. Y

A common objection to treatment by direct weight by a complementary elevation placed under the foot, themuscles andligaments of thefootmay tend to become adjustedto the lessened demand upon theminstead of build I ing up strengthvand toneto holdanormal arch under natural conditions;

In the course of developing an arch support to befree from this objection, and in studying so methods of hastening the correction of such foot troubles, I have discovered thefeflicacy, of employing a supporting elevation or arch disposed just theopposite, from the position of the usual complementary typeofsupg5 port, that is the arch I iamploysextends 1ongitudinally of the foot along the outer longitudinal side and slopes laterally downward towards the inner longitudinal. side of the foot. called that of indirect support, because the arch of the foot is not directly supported.

VVhile the cause of the increased curative effects of my device over the usual construet-ion is not readily'analyzed into individual 5 factors of definiterelative weight, nevertheless, certain advantages of my method'of treating arch troubles may be pointed out.

In the first place, by virtue of the; disposi tion of the arch of my support, the weight- :TO i

bearing contactof the intermediate portion 7 of the foot is along the outer longitudinal side as nature intended, instead tr being disshall refer to this I underlying idea as the tundra the arch bone In the second place, my support tends to rockthe foot laterally inward, thereby Gall S ing a beneficial reaction of'the muscles similar to thatinvolved in corrective foot exer-- cises inwhich the foot is turned to throwthe weighton the outer side, This inuscularrew support is that when the arch is relieved of fiction ge e blood u a ion nd the foot seemsto relieve, the strainonlthoseieo" The principle involved. may be Q9 Ito - understood as indispensable in obtaining the previously indicated benefits ascribed to my form of longitudinal arch. When this cushion is positioned to elevate the forward ends of the second and third metatarsal bones, it

" exerts a beneficial influence which extends to the firstmetatarsal bone and which augments the beneficial effects of the primary longi tudinal support. The cushion also has a moderating effect on the tendency of the longitudinal support to tilt or rock the foot lat I erally, that is, it serves as a bearing point which may beused, especially in the initial fstage of treatment, to assist the muscles to resist the tilting action. It has been found,

tions Qfthe inner soleare the longitudinal arch 11 and the forward cushion 12; ,It will in which:

also, that sucha cushion'straig'htens the toes inopposition to any tendency of the phalanges to be pulledupward or downward by I the unnatural strain on ligaments commonly occasioned by displaced bones. My form of longitudinal arch in combination with such a cushlon constitutes a complete corrective device applicable to various degrees of arch re b e While my invention may. be incorporated in a shoe construction, it is particularly applicable to an arch support manufactured as a separate inner sole, and will be so described for the purposes of disclosure.

The objects and advantages of my invention will be apparent from the detailed des'cription to follow, taken with the drawing,

' Fig. 1 is a plan view of the left arch support, with the bones of the foot indicated by dotted lines; 7

'. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the arch support, taken from the right-hand side; 7 I

j Fig. is a front end elevation; V F g-4 isa rear end elevation; and

bis a transverse section taken as indicated by the lines 5 5 of Fig. 2. V

The position. of the .K arious bones of the foot'with relation to the inn'er sole, generally designated 10, is indicated by Fig} 1. The

first to the fifth. metatarsal bones are numbered with Roman numerals I, II, III, IV and V respectively. The two elevated porbe, noted that the longitudinal arch slopes 1-, laterally downward from the outer, longitudinal side of'the feet under the fifth metatarsal bone towards the opposite side of the foot; The extent of this arch may be varied both longitudinally and laterally; but for I the average case of foottrouble. I prefer the I configuration shown. Beginning iforward substantially at the metatarsal joint 13 between the fifth metatarsal bone and its cor responding phalangell, the arch extends rearward to the posterior end of the cuboid 15, and slopes down laterally towards the first metatarsal bone. The cushion 12 is placed under the ball of the foot, preferably in a relatively central position to support the second and third metatarsal joints, as shown.

The inner sole 10 may be of rigid or semirigid metal construction, but I prefer to fabricate it from flexible material, such as leather. An upper ply or leather inner sole 16 overlies and is cemented to. a lowerlayer of leather 17, the two being cut to a suitable configuration to fit inside a shoe. Interposed between, and cemented to, the two plies 16 and 17 is a cushion, or core, 18 of rubber, or a like material, which forms the body of the longitudinal elevation or arch 11. A refine ment in this construction, which is desirable but not indispensable, is a flange 19' turned upward along the outer longitudinal side'of inner sole 10' adjacent arch 11, for the pur: pose of preventing the footworking overthe outside edge of arch 11. This flangemay be formed by simply extending the two plies above and beyond core 18, as indicated'by Fig. 5. v I V Forward cushion 12 may be constructed with a permanently encased piece of rubber, as in the case of core 18, but preferably is made to be readily adjusted to meet individual requirements. To. this end, an arcuate line of stitching 20 may define an open pocket 100 21 betweenv the two plies 16 and 17 at the. forward end of inner sole 10, in order tore- 'ceive a removable core or cushion generally Preferably the bottom of the inner sole faced with a thin'sheet of rubber 24 to insure adequate frictional engagement with the in-' 11 0 side of the shoe. 1

' 7 It is obvious that the whole device may be molded of rubber in one piece or mayconjsist of a suitablyshaped piece of rubber with a leather facing on the upper surface.

The above described inner sole is, the preferred form of my invention, but-the principles I have discovered and disclose may be embodied in other forms structurally diver-g.

gent from the described arch support, and I reserve the right to all such embodiments'as properly come within the scope of my appended claim.

Havin described my invention, I claim :v

An arch support comprising: a flexible inner sole having a pocket underlyingthe ball of the foot; a rubber cushion incorporated in the inner sole,rforrning a longitudinally ex tending arch support tapering laterally downward fromthe' outer longitudinal side wner sole, said disks being cemented together face to face in concentric relation and ar ranged in a progressive series with the smallest disk uppermost.

In Witness that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto subscribed my name this 25th day of June, 1931.

JOHN H. GOLDEN. 

